thanks, guys! Kellie, yes! I plan on doing a post about it at some point, but for the time being, prepare some meals "the lazy way."

You can put your desired meat in a zippered plastic bag with your favorite sauce: pasta sauce, bbq sauce, those Lawry or similar marinades, a packet of onion soup mix, etc. Freeze in the bags, then in the morning, thaw a bit under some running water, and plop into a crock. You usually won't need to add any extra moisture, unless your slow cooker is huge and it isn't very full. Then serve the meat over rice or pasta.

You can also make full-meals-in-a-bag by putting in the ingredients for your favorite chili, stew, or soups in a plastic bag, along with all spices, chopped veggies, etc. In the morning, thaw a bit, and add broth or water according to the recipe directions.

I have had better luck with a baby freezer stash by making the meals this way, than I do when the food is already cooked and then frozen. If you do decide to precook some food, it's better to heat it again on the stovetop, in the oven, or in the microwave than in the crock.

congratulations! feel free to email me if you have other questions.xoxo steph

How cute. I definitely would not have guessed that was where this post was heading. But I guess that is definitely the epitome of slow cooking. :-) And we all know that mamas always want to "just eat up" their little creations. :-)

Congratulations girl!!! That's awesome! And I experienced the morning sickness too. YUCKY. It's a wonder I went on to have three more kids after the first one... I was sick for 8 1/2 months with him... right up until he came out! I weighed less when I gave birth to him than I did when I got pregnant!Wishing you a wonderful pregnancy from here on out!!

I have to tell you that I have made your BBQ pulled pork recipe so many times it's riduculous. The last time was this weekend for a huge party my daughter & SIL had at their house. 60 very hungry guests, many of whom had participated in the Philadelphia Triathalon earlier in the day. RAVE reviews for the pork, and many requests for the recipe. I make sure that when I give out the recipe, I also include a link to your site. BTW, I add a teasp of liquid smoke to the mix -- REALLY makes it taste like it's been BBQed, and not crocked.

I could not be happier for you! We had our second baby in April. I am so grateful I discovered your Slow Cooking blog in December. It got me through my pregnancy because I could make meals when I had the energy and and then put them in the slow cooker at the right time and now "you" are helping my family transition as I return to work. We do your daily 7 every day, we PROM, and have a meal plan for every week. You are a godsend for busy parents!

Congrats!!! We are due in October and I found your site so helpful. Putting frozen meat and ingredients in the crockpot in the morning before the sickness really hit and then being able to eat or at least know my family was eating at night when the bone-crushing tiredness kicked in was so wonderful. Afternoons were the worst for me and I couldn't handle cooking raw meat, but frozen wasn't so bad. I could avoid the house all day and by the time I had to actually smell anything it smelled like food and not dead animals. So excited to hear about your adventures!

I'm slow cooking baby #4...and due in September - in FLORIDA of all places. I should learn by now to avoid looking sideways at my husband between October and March. Baby #3 will slide right into the mix in your household. Congratulations ;) check out the expecting club boards on ivillage.

I'm sure I'll use your applesauce recipe minus the additional stuff to spruce up flavor when this Stowaway is old enough for it.

I hadn't heard you were pregnant- congrats!At some point maybe you could do a post about easy dinners that either you can make in the crockpot and freeze for later when you're too busy with the baby or things you can put together and freeze, then just dump in the crockpot to be ready that night.

Congrats! I have celiac disease and a five month old son. Thankfully, I discovered your blog right before he was born. It has been a lifesaver for me as a new mom on a special diet. Thanks for doing what you do!

Congrats!! Nice way to put it, slow cooking daily. I'm due early December, and have just started to come around to looking at/thinking about food again. Swiss Chicken in the crock pot last night, and maybe Salisbury Steak tonight.

congrats. I'm so glad you're not feeling sick anymore as I was the entire pregnancy...blech...cheetos and chocolate were my only consolation until at 6 months cheetos came out in an unpleasant way...they it was just chocolate...:) I'm surprised my child came out human and not a chocolate kid...

Congratualations on the baby #3! Fight through that god awful sickness :)

Today I was thinking of making my mom's famous minestrone, but your blog is making me toy with the idea of trying to do it in the crock. The ingredients, roughly, are:olive oil, dried macaroni,veggies [carrots, celery, onions, etc], a can of tomatoes, a few cans of beans, a small bunch of fresh/chopped spinach, and obviously, some broth/water.

Any hints on how to best convert this to a crockpot recipe?

Any other general tips on how to convert other stovetop recipes would be helpful too :]

Congratulations on your new addition. I'm a newbie to your blog and will be looking for your book in our bookstores - I already use my crockpot for lots of meals (I have 5 crockpots) and will be trolling your blog for more ideas. I tried the potato soup recipe last week - it went down well, but hubby wants leek in it next time.Thanks for so many useful recipies.

OMG!!! How amazing! That is one heck of a slow cook! FYI- I just made my 9 month old Beef Barley soup in the crock- SO SO SO easy, SO SO SO hearty and much better than anything that comes in a jar. Here's what I did- browned some beef chunks, sliced some carrots, threw in some dried split peas, regular barley and some water. I threw in a bay leaf for good measure, then cooked on high for 4 hours or so. Cooled it off, threw it in the food processor, and viola- 14 jars of hearty, homemade baby food. If the celery wasn't looking a little old, I would have thrown that in too. Good luck with your little one. :-)

I'm expecting #6 in early October and I'm just now reaching the energy to cook ahead and freeze for when baby comes. My first trimester ickiness lasted longer than the first trimester this time. So glad to finally be beyond that.

We used to have lots of friends bring meals when baby comes, but that is much more challenging with the size of our family and with being gluten-free.

Once again, your catalogue of recipes is becoming a welcome friend to help me plan meals. Thank you so very much for the work and effort you put into this site.

I pray the rest of your pregnancy be free of ickiness and full of delight. What a wonderful New Year Blessing to look forward to!

Congrats my nephew is 5 weeks and I watch him daily so my sister can get some sleep..(should have thought twice about having her first at 35) I hope you have a great pregnancy. How old are your other two?

Oooh, Congratulations! Thank you so much for the time you spend blogging and encouraging us to care for our families well. So glad you're past the icky nauseating stuff, at least most of it. Thanks for your humor, too. Very funny! You've saved my dinners many times! God bless

Congrats! I love your blog and you have inspired me to cook with my crockpot this summer instead of heating up the oven and stove. My utitlity bill was even alot cheaper! Thanks for all you do!Also, I have three myself. Let me tell you, there is just something so sweet about that thrid one. Mine melts my heart everytime I look at her! Hope you feel better soon!

Congrats!! I have enjoyed following your blog for almost a year now! The slow cooker is a pg mommy's best friend when you only have about 10 mins of energy at a time! Good luck with the sickness - I am 21 wks with our 2nd & it has just settled (THANK GOD!). I agree with another poster that Zofran is a busy mom's ali!! Here's to a great, happy, healthy pregnancy! ~Karen

Wonderful news, both about the new baby and your return to "normal" life. It's been a while since I was pregnant, but I well remember how tired I was the first few months, sleeping like the dead every night and waking up un-rested. My sense of smell was affected; we had to change the bathroom soap and throw out a potpourri pillow. I lost my taste for Italian food and never really got it back. My husband brought home a pizza and I made him eat it outside. But to compensate, I developed an insatiable craving for Mexican food. We had tacos every night for a while. Those were the days!

Congratulations! Wow! Our baby # 4 is due at the end of October, and I have to tell you thanks again for doing this blog - especially since I have come to love my crockpot even more during the past few months! In fact, I came here just now to look at your baked potato soup recipe! Craving!!! :) Congrats again! Glad the sickness is letting up!

Congratulations! All the best to you with your pregnancy. We are still slow cooking about once a week. Just made the skinned whole chicken like Rotisserie Chicken this week. My guys deemed it the best chicken ever. Hurray! The leftovers are going into the buffalo wing lasagna tomorrow. You probably already do this, but when the weather is hot and I don't want the extra heat in the house, I put the crockpot in the garage to cook.

What wonderful news. Your recipes have been a true godsend for me - during my 3rd pregnancy, and now trying to manage a 3.5 year old, 2 year old and 3 month old! (note - it is crazy crazy crazy to have 3!).

Amazing. Am sure that you have heard this over 365 times, but here is another "Thank You!" Just spent two wee a.m. hours reading over your blog/recipes. I don't know if you will get a movie deal, as Julie/Julia did - but, you deserve multiple awards. Funny, creative, patient, enthusiastic, knowledgable - you are. Thank you for sharing & inspiring!!! Will be pre-ordering your book.

someone just directed me to this other gluten free recipe website today and thought you might enjoy it...haven't seen a slow cooker recipe yet but the one's I have seen sure look yummy. http://healthyindulgences.blogspot.com/

Congrats to you! I'm currently 31 weeks with my first baby and your blog has been a lifesaver. It is a hot and humid summer here in NYC and I only have A/C in the bedroom so I need to spend as little time in the hot kitchen as possible.

I've been doing whole chickens a few times a month and using the leftovers for all sort of easy stuff that even my husband can make--stir fry, quesadillas, soup, etc.